Talanta 70 (2006) 950956

The application of ICP-MS and ICP-OES in determination of

micronutrients in wood ashes used as soil conditioners
H. Gorecka, K. Chojnacka , H. Gorecki
Institute of Inorganic Technology and Mineral Fertilizers, Wroclaw University of Technology, I-26, ul. Smoluchowskiego 25, 50-372 Wroclaw, Poland
Received 15 September 2005; received in revised form 8 December 2005; accepted 18 May 2006
Available online 27 June 2006

Abstract
In the present paper, the elemental composition of wood ashes obtained by the combustion of wood in a fireplace was determined with the use
of ICP-MS and ICP-OES techniques. Wood ashes may find a potential application as deacidifying agents and soil conditioners, since they contain
calcium (in the form of CaCO3 and CaO), potassium (in the form of K2 SO4 and K2 CO3 ) and significant levels of micronutrients. However, if
applied to soil, it is important to assess the bioavailability of particular elements to plants. This process can be simulated by proper extraction
procedures.
Various species of wood were combusted in a firestove in a single-family house. The ashes underwent multielemental analyses with ICP-MS
Varian Ultra Mass 700 (Australia) and ICP-OES Vista-MPX from Varian (Australia) in order to determine the content of macro- and micronutrients
as well as toxic elements. Ashes were also extracted with solutions of 0.1 M NaNO3 and water in order to simulate the process of elemental transfer
from ash (used as soil conditioner) to soil solution and consequently to plants. Also, the environmental impact of ash supplementation to soil was
assessed in these experiments. Soil was supplemented with 020% of ash. After elution, the eluent underwent multielemental analysis by ICP-MS
and ICP-OES techniques to determine the content of macronutrients (P, K, Mg), micronutrients (Fe, Mn, Co, Mo, Zn, Cu and Ti) and toxic elements
(Hg, Pb, As and Cd).
It was shown that fireplace ashes can be applied for deacidification of homestead gardens. Ash may be described as a valuable soil conditioner
with N:P:K formula 0:1:3. It is concluded therefore that in order to achieve full fertilization, additional supplementation with nitrogen fertilizer
would be necessary.
2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Wood ashes; Macronutrients; Micronutrients; Toxic elements; Soil conditioners; Soil deacidification; ICP-MS; ICP-OES

1. Introduction also be consistent with the policy of sustainable development

The combustion of wood has the potential to become
more common way of heating houses. The use of biofuels
conforms to recent political tendencies. In Kyoto protocol,
39 industrialized countries (USA, European Union, Russia,
East European countries, Japan, Canada, Switzerland) have
assigned CO2 -emission limit. The combustion of wood enables
to balance CO2 emission with consumption. Therefore, in the
future, forests will be exploited for wood more extensively [1]
and this would lead to a depletion of nutrients in forest soils. One
potential way to prevent this would be to recycle the nutrients
taken up by burnt wood back to the forest [2]. This would
Corresponding author. Tel.: +48 71 3203131; fax: +48 71 3203469.
E-mail address: katarzyna.chojnacka@pwr.wroc.pl (K. Chojnacka).
[3].
Ash from the combustion of wood was sent in the past to
landfills, however this method of disposal became expensive.
Therefore, the possibility of applying wood ash in agriculture
and forestry is being intensively investigated. There are several
problems that need to be resolved in order to utilize this by-
product in practice. First of all, bioavailability of the nutrients
to plants should be assessed. Also, the environmental impact
of wood ash supplementation to soil should be investigated, in
particular the content and availability of toxic elements and the
effect on microbial communities should be studied [4].
Wood ash contains all the nutrients that were taken up by trees
from soil, except nitrogen and sulfur that volatilized during the
combustion process. Therefore, when used as soil amendment,
nitrogen fertilizers should also be applied. When introduced to
soil, wood ash acts also as a liming agent by increasing soil pH.

0039-9140/$ see front matter 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.talanta.2006.05.061
 H. Gorecka et al. / Talanta 70 (2006) 950956 951

Table 1 Table 2
The operating parameters of determination of elements by ICP-OES The operating parameters of determination of elements by ICP-MS
Method parameters Al Ca, Mg, Na, K P value Method parameters Value

RF power (kW) 0.95 0.80 1.10 Power (kW) 1.40

Plasma flow (l min1 ) 15.0 12.0 16.5 Plasma flow (l/min) 16.0
Nebulizer Flow (l min1 ) 0.69 0.76 0.79 Nebulizer flow (l/min) 0.95
Viewing height (mm) 12 15 15 Sampling depth (mm) 5.5
Pump rate (rpm) 15 15 15 Extraction lens (V) 450
Rinse time (s) 10 10 10 First lens (V) 260
Auxiliary flow (l min1 ) 1.5 0.75 1.5 Second lens (V) 11.2
Replicates 3 3 3 Third lens (V) 0.4
Replicate read time (s) 10 5 5 Fourth lens (V) 60
Instrument stabilization (s) 15 15 15 Photon stop (V) 10.0
Sample uptake delay (s) 30 25 23 Entrance plate (V) 0.4
Exit plate (V) 0
Element Emission line (nm) Pump rate (rpm) 20
Rinse time (s) 10
Al 396.152 Auxiliary flow (l/min) 1.25
Ca 396.847 Replicates 3
K 766.491 Replicate read time (s) 10
Na 589.592 Instrument stabilization (s) 10
P 213.618 Sample delay uptake (s) 50

For this reason, it would be advantageous to apply wood ash to
soil in the area of acid rain deposition [4].
The composition of wood ash varies and depends on both:
tree species and combustion conditions [1]. Wood ash is consid-
ered as a rich source of potassium, calcium, magnesium and
phosphorus, as well as micronutrients. The average reported
composition is: Ca 180 g kg1 , K 27.9 g kg1 , Mg 9.7 g kg1 ,
P 4.2 g kg1 , N 0.6 g kg1 . It was found that the availability of
potassium was the same as in potassium fertilizers, but phos-
phorus was lower when compared with phosphorus fertilizers.
In the literature [3,11], there is inconsistency in the reports on
the availability of magnesium. It is thought that bioavailability of
micronutrients (Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu) is low due to increased pH.
Wood ash is also a good source of boron [4]. It was found that
the level of organic contaminants (PAHs, PCBs, chlorobenzenes
and chlorophenols) was low [5,6].

Table 3
The comparison of recommended and information (*) values obtained for Polish Certified Reference Material for multielement trace analysis Fine Flye Ash
(CTA-FFA-1)
Element Certified concentration Obtained result Recovery (%)
Mean Uncertainity Mean Uncertainity

Al (%) 14.87 0.39 12.64 5.06 85

As (mg kg1 ) 53.6 2.7 46.1 16.1 86
Be (g kg1 ) 27* 28 14 105
Ca (%) 2.29* 2.24 0.90 98
Cd (mg kg1 ) 2.8* 2.6 0.9 93
Ce (mg kg1 ) 120 7 116 41 97
Cr (mg kg1 ) 156 8 161 56 103
Cu (mg kg1 ) 158 9 153 54 97
Fe (%) 4.89 0.14 4.94 1.98 101
Ga (mg kg1 ) 49* 48 17 97
K (%) 2.20* 2.18 0.87 99
La (mg kg1 ) 60.7 4.0 58.9 20.6 97
Mg (%) 1.55* 1.52 0.61 98
Mn (mg kg1 ) 1066 41 1034 362 97
Na (%) 2.19 0.08 2.28 0.91 104
Ni (mg kg1 ) 99.0 5.8 105.9 37.1 107
P (%) 0.0725 0.0074 0.07 0.02 96
Pb (mg kg1 ) 369 46 362 127 98
Rb (mg kg1 ) 185 5 176 62 95
Sb (mg kg1 ) 17.6 2.5 17.1 6.0 97
Th (mg kg1 ) 29.40 0.70 27.64 9.67 94
Ti (mg kg1 ) 0.58* 0.56 0.19 96
U (mg kg1 ) 15.10 0.80 14.04 4.92 93
V (mg kg1 ) 260 10 255 89 98
Zn (mg kg1 ) 569 58 563 197 99
952 H. Gorecka et al. / Talanta 70 (2006) 950956

Literature reports that the supplementation of wood ash to soil
should be moderate [9]. If applied according to limestone needs,
wood ash would be considered a valuable soil amendment, not
causing additional soil pollution [4]. It is also advantageous to
use wood ash as amendment to acidic forest soil [7,8] usually
applied in the dosage 17 Mg ha1 [9].
Hallenbarter et al. [3] studied the combined effect of wood ash
and liquid fertilization on nutritional status and growth of Nor-
way spruce in a forest. The authors observed increased growth,
but no major shifts in the levels and ratios of nutrients were
detected. Arvidsson et al. [9] examined effects of the appli-
cation of wood ash on ground vegetation of Norway spruce
in the dosage 3 Mg ha1 . No visible negative response to the
ash application was recorded. Voundi Nkana et al. [10] studied
chemical effects of wood ash on growth of rye grass in tropi-
cal acid soils. Plants grown on ash-amended soil showed higher
biomass production than plants grown on lime and control treat-
ments. Steenari et al. [11] studied the release of mineral nutrients
and other species from soils amended with wood ash. Low leach-
ing rates of important plant nutrients were recorded (Mg, Fe and
other metals) and rapid release of alkali metals (K, Na) was
observed.
Mahmood et al. [12] investigated the effect of wood ash on
microbial activity, plant growth and nutrients uptake by ectomy-
corrhizal spruce seedlings. The authors found that ash treatment
had a highly significant positive effect on plant growth as well
as on shoot and root concentrations of K, Ca and P irrespective
on mycorrhizal status. Zimmermann and Frey [1] examined
the effect of wood ash on soil and microbial respiration in
soils fertilized with wood ash in the dosage 8 Mg ha1 . Higher
biomass and bioactivity of soil microorganisms were observed
after supplementation with ash due to increase of pH as well
as the level of nutrients, therefore increased mineralization of
organic matter was detected. Perkiomaki and Fritze [13] studied
the effects of wood ash on boreal forest humus microbial
community. The authors found that the supplementation with
wood ash resulted in increase of microbial activity. Similar
results were obtained by Yrjala et al. [14], who studied

Table 4
The elemental composition of ashes from various tree species and soils
Element Literature data Oak Oak II Birch Apple tree Ash Coniferous tree Soil
Etiegni et al. [17] Huang et al. [18]

Ag (mg kg1 ) 4.19 3.91 6.53 3.65 4.56 4.84 13.4

Al (%) 2.36 1.30 0.85 0.20 0.23 0.15 1.76 0.72 0.64
As (mg kg1 ) 22.0 21.3 19.1 19.8 23.6 23.2 63.9
B (mg kg1 ) 8 127 345 222 511 257 521 274 24.3
Be (g kg1 ) 535 76 383 255 473 601. 469
Bi (g kg1 ) 1.37 0.05 60.3 0.0005 0.0005 177 4.21
Co (mg kg1 ) 7.29 7.450 13.34 4.79 7.230 15.23 4.897
Ca (%) 31.74 10.94 31.1 36.1 29.4 35.1 24.3 19.8 2.32
Cd (mg kg1 ) 21 3 7.8 4.2 23.3 1.7 3.2 16.0 0.27
Ce (mg kg1 ) 1.8 1.9 2.4 0.91 2.9 4.9 6.5
Cr (mg kg1 ) 86 14 75.9 6.07 16.3 5.79 5.69 82.8 25.3
Cu (mg kg1 ) 145 78 111 153 143 96.8 176 123 24.2
Fe (%) 1.95 0.33 0.58 0.56 0.53 0.56 0.48 2.36 0.970
Ga (mg kg ) 7.75 73.6 84.8 66.3 87.9 84.6 77.4
Ge (mg kg ) 1.60 18.5 24.1 24.5 20.7 43.4 30.2
Hg (g kg1 ) 6.30 0.0001 0.01 0.0001 0.0001 0.0001 95.29
K (%) 4.13 2.86 4.85 8.22 6.25 5.16 12.26 3.43 0.454
La (mg kg1 ) 1.11 5.16 2.31 0.666 1.99 10.4 3.20
Mo (mg kg1 ) 2.81 0.334 0.960 1.28 0.419 1.95 1.74
Mg (%) 2.25 1.62 0.96 3.33 2.51 5.16 2.77 1.35 0.251
Mn (%) 0.669 0.347 0.999 1.23 1.69 0.191 0.236 0.775 0.047
Na (%) 0.34 0.16 0.21 0.15 0.16 0.19 0.24 0.86 0.122
Nb (g kg1 ) 521 464 419 362 316 8107 1397
Ni (mg kg1 ) 47 12 87.7 63.4 37.8 47.0 102 53.1 10.8
P (%) 1.40 0.69 0.85 1.52 1.97 1.15 2.19 2.11 0.169
Pb (mg kg1 ) 130 66 32.1 87.1 103 25.2 42.6 690 15.2
Pd (g kg1 ) 653 494 448 580 719 538 567
Rb (mg kg1 ) 47 103 141 37.2 158 177 22.3
Rh (g kg ) 20.4 11.6 0.0006 29.2 12.0 11.5 0.0006
Sb (mg kg1 ) 2.63 1.13 0.516 1.02 0.49 14.1 4.63
Sn (mg kg1 ) 1.76 0.316 0.351 0.346 0.230 2.32 1.37
Th (g kg1 ) 0.0006 0.0006 0.0006 0.0006 0.0006 0.0006 0.0015
Ti (mg kg1 ) 259 302 294 237 256 2941 675
Tl (g kg1 ) 75.6 17.2 0.05 0.00 0.06 119 15.2
U (g kg1 ) 28.8 13.5 15.5 6.45 18.0 40.0 47.5
V (mg kg1 ) 0.00 2.71 0.03 0.03 0.03 20.3 5.12
Zn (mg kg1 ) 700 794 228 401 4903 756 577 5020 117
Zr (mg kg1 ) 1.08 1.66 1.21 0.770 0.769 7.54 6.53
 H. Gorecka et al. / Talanta 70 (2006) 950956 953

Table 5
The comparison of the composition of wood ash and soil (a), extraction efficiency (b) and bioavailability (c) of elements from ash, soil and soil supplemented with
ash
(a)

Macronutrients and micronutrients the level of which
was higher in wood ash when comparing with soil
Macronutrients: K (15 times higher content in ash than
in soil), Ca (13 times), Mg (11 times), P (10 times),
Na (2.5 times)
Micronutrients: Cd, Pb, Bi, Ni, Tl.
Elements the level of which was Toxic elements the level of which was lower in ash
similar in ash and in soil when comparing with soil
Cr, Nb, La, Ti, Al, Pd, Ga Fe, Be, V, Hg (91 times), Zr (3 times), As (3 times), Ag (3
Sb, Ge, Sn, Mo times), Ce (2.5 times), U (2 times)

(b)

The extraction efficiency of
the following elements
increased after addition of
wood ash to soil
K, Sb, Mo, Rb, Ge, B, V, Ga,
Na, Cr, U
The extraction efficiency of the
following elements reached
maximum at intermediate level of
ash supplementation (510%)
Al, Cd, Zr, Ni, Nb, Co, Zn, Mn, Pb,
La, Ce, Be, Rh
The extraction of the following The extraction efficiency of the
elements decreased with increase of following elements did not change
ash supplementation after addition of wood ash to soil
Ca, Mg, P, Tl As, Cu, Fe, Ti, Bi, Sn

(c)

Availability of the following,
elements increased with
the increase of the level of
ash supplementation
Co, Zr, U, Sb, V, Cu, Ce, La,
Ge, Ti, Nb, Fe, Sn, Ga, As,
Pb, Cd, Pd, Ni, Mn, Zn
Availability of the following,
elements decreased with the
increase of the level of ash
supplementation
Rb, Ti, Cr, Al, Ca, P, Mg, Bi
Availability of the following,
elements did not changed
with the increase of the level
of ash supplementation
Mo, K, B
The following elements were
available from soil (extraction
efficiency was higher than
5%)
Mo, K, Sb, V, Ti, Rb, Cr
The following elements were
available from ash (the level
of supplementation 5%)
Mo, K, Rb

changes in Archaea from coniferous forest humus after ash
treatment.
The aim of this study was to investigate the applicability
of wood ash as a soil conditioner and deacidifying agent. The
composition of wood ash and bioavailability to plants of macro-,
micro- and toxic elements from soil supplemented with ash (as
the function of the level of ash supplementation to soil that was
in the range 020%) to plants were estimated. Also, the environ-
mental impact was simulated under laboratory conditions. In the
present study, the level of 39 elements was tested in the studied
ash material as well as in leached extracts. The concentration
of many elements was very low and therefore could be detected
only with the use of the very sensitive methods of ICP-MS and
also ICP-OES.
soil extract and plant was 0.1 mol/l NaNO3 (average correlation
coefficient: 0.649). For this reason, in the present study this
solution was used to estimate bioavailability of elements from
soil, soil supplemented with wood ash and wood ash to plants.
2.1. Wood ash and soil
Wood ash was obtained through the combustion of oak wood
in a single family house in a fireplace (Supra, France) having
the following characteristics: power 15 kW, the rate of wood
combustion was typical (0.060.07 m3 wood day1 ). After the
combustion, the ash was collected, grinded and mixed. Soil used
in the experiment was standard commercially available garden

2. Materials and methods

The investigation into the micronutrient content of ash, soil

and soil supplemented with ash and their potential availability to
plants was assessed directly with the use of multielemental anal-
ysis and also after extraction with 0.1 M NaNO3 (bioavailability
test) and water (environmental impact test). Previously [15],
several extraction solutions were investigated (1 mol/l MgCl2 ,
0.1 mol/l NaNO3 , 0.1 mol/l K2 P2 O7 , 2% (w/v) CH3 COOH, 2%
(w/v) HCOOH, 2% (w/v) ammonium citrate, 2% (w/v) citric
acid, 0.05 mol/l Na2 EDTA, 0.1 mol/l EDTA, 0.05 mol/l CaCl2 ,
mixture of HCl and HNO3 ) in order to select the extraction
system that would enable to simulate the bioavailability of
elements to plants. The extracting agent that showed the highest
value of correlation coefficients between the composition of Fig. 1. Germination tests on soil supplemented with ash.
954 H. Gorecka et al. / Talanta 70 (2006) 950956
soil that was not enriched with neither organic nor mineral fer-
tilizers. The ash was introduced to the soil in quantities ranging
from 0 to 20%. The mixture underwent microwave digestion
and afterwards the content of macronutrients, micronutrients
and toxic elements was determined. The effect of ash supple-
mentation on plants was also studied by germination tests that
were performed on Petri dishes with the use of radish seeds. Ger-
mination efficiency was calculated as the fraction of seeds that
germinated. Also, the composition of wood ashes originating
from other tree species (birch, apple tree, ash tree and conifer-
ous tree) was determined.
2.2. Elution
The ash and the mixture of ash and soil underwent the pro-
cess of extraction with 0.1 M NaNO3 solution and water. The
composition of the eluents obtained after extraction (4 h) of 10 g
of ashes in 100 ml of extractant was determined with the use
of both: ICP-OES and ICP-MS. The eluents were analyzed in
order to collect data on elemental solubilities in solutions consid-
ered to be commonly used extraction solutions and to determine
the level of bioavailability to plants. High correlations between
Fig. 2. Elution of elements from soil supplemented with ash with water.
the concentration of the majority of elements in the solution of
0.1 M NaNO3 after extraction and in plants have been previously
reported [15].
2.3. Analytical methods
The samples of ash and soil underwent microwave diges-
tion by samples decomposition in Teflon bombs with the use
of Milestone MLS-1200 MEGA microwave digestion system.
For digestion of 0.1 g ash and 0.5 g soil, a mixture of ultra pure
concentrated acids (2.5 ml of nitric acid and 7.5 ml of hydrochlo-
ric acid from Merck) was used. Afterwards, the samples were
diluted with demineralized water to the volume 75 ml. The
extracts were analyzed directly, without further digestion.
The digested samples of ash, soil mixed with ash, as well as
solutions of the extractants after elution underwent multielemen-
tal analyses with the use of plasma spectrometry: macronutrients
and Al were analyzed with the use of ICP-OES Varian Vista
MPX (Australia) (Ca, K, Mg, Na, P and Al). The concen-
tration of micronutrients and toxic elements (except Hg) was
determined with ICP-MS Varian Ultra Mass 700 (Australia).
Mercury was analyzed with Mercury analyzer AMA 254 (the
 H. Gorecka et al. / Talanta 70 (2006) 950956
operating parameters: sample mass: 0.2 g, drying time: ash and
soil, 10 s, extract, 50 s, decomposition, 200 s, waiting: 60 s),
atomic absorption spectrometer (Czech Republic). The operat-
ing parameters for ICP-OES are shown in Table 1 and ICP-MS
in Table 2. The instruments were calibrated with the use of
multielement standard solutions prepared from single elements
standard solutions (Ultra Scientific ICP standards 1000 and
10,000 g ml1 ). The analytical process was validated by the
use of an ash matrix standard. Polish Certified Reference Mate-
rial for multielement trace analysis Fine Flye Ash (CTA-FFA-1)
from Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology (Poland)
was analyzed and the comparison of obtained results and certi-
fied concentrations is shown in Table 3. Uncertainty and recov-
ery were calculated according to international standards [16].
3. Results and discussion
Many authors report [1,4] that the composition of wood ash
varies in dependent on not only tree species, but also on local
conditions (i.e. soil content) on which a tree was growing. In the
present study, the analysis of wood ash from various tree species
(oak, birch, apple tree, ash tree and coniferous tree) showed large
Fig. 3. Elution of elements from soil supplemented with ash with 0.1 M NaNO3 .
955
differences (Table 4). Also, differences in the composition of
wood ash originating from the same tree species were observed.
The average composition of wood ash was compared with the
composition of the soil to which it was introduced. The com-
parison of ash and soil content is presented in Table 5a. It was
found that wood ash is a source of macro- and micronutrients.
The level of toxic elements was found to be similar. This data
support the theory that wood ash if supplemented to soil is a
rich source of macro- and micronutrients. It contains also some
toxic elements, however since wood ash affects soil pH it would
probably decrease bioavailability of elements (supplied by ash
and also present in soil) to plants.
When introducing wood ash to soil, it is important to estimate
the appropriate dosage. High dosages of ash might be dangerous
to plants and the microbial community, due to pH changes. In
the present study, the garden soil was supplemented with ash in
the quantity 020%. We examined the effect of ash level sup-
plementation on germination efficiency of radish seeds (Fig. 1).
We also studied the effect of ash content in soil on elemental
transfer to the aqueous environment in order to assess the poten-
tial transfer of toxic elements to ground and surface waters, as
well as to determine the loss of fertilizer components: macro-
956 H. Gorecka et al. / Talanta 70 (2006) 950956
and microelements (Fig. 2). Also the bioavailability of elements
to plants was investigated (Fig. 3).
The level of ash supplementation had a substantial effect on
seeds germination. It was found that ash supplementation at the
level 15% did not have strong adverse effect on germination of
radish. Introduction of 20% ash resulted in almost total growth
inhibition (Fig. 1).
The environmental impact of ash supplementation was stud-
ied by extraction with water (Fig. 2). Extraction of ash, soil and
soil supplemented with ash was performed. We found that the
level of ash supplementation had an effect on elements transfer to
water (Fig. 2). The results of experiments on the extraction effi-
ciency are presented in Table 5b. Bioavailability of elements to
plants was examined through the extraction with 0.1 M NaNO3 .
Different results were obtained when comparing with the extrac-
tion with water. Availability of elements is discussed in Table 5c.
4. Conclusions
In order to investigate the theoretical bioavailability of ele-
ments from soil and soil supplemented with ash, extraction
procedures were also utilized. The environmental impact of
elemental transfer to ground and surface water was also inves-
tigated. The level of 39 elements was determined in wood ash,
soil and extracts using the analytical techniques of both ICP-
OES and ICP-MS.
The experimental results showed that the supplementation of
wood ash to soil resulted in increase of the levels of macroele-
ments, microelements and toxic elements, the solubility in
water and availability to plants was low. Wood ash was found
to be a rich source of macronutrients: the concentration of K,
Ca, Mg and P was 1015 times higher than in soil. Also, wood
ash supplied micronutrients. Over 15 times higher levels of Mn,
Zn and B were detected. The level of some toxic elements was
higher (Cd, Pb), but the concentration of other (Hg, As, U) was
lower when compared with soil. Although ash was the source
of various elements it did not mean that they were readily
available to plants and environment. We found that only potas-
sium showed high solubilities in water, unlike the remaining
macronutrients (Ca, Mg and P), the solubility of which sig-
nificantly decreased. The solubility of micronutrients supplied
by the ash: Mn and Zn increased at intermediate levels of ash
supplementation and decreased at higher levels. The effect on
boron solubility was reverse. The solubility of toxic elements
supplied by ash (Cd and Pb) was very low: in the case of Cd
less than 2% and in the case of Pb less than 1%. Bioavailability
tests showed that the level of ash supplementation did not affect
the availability of K. Bioavailability of the remaining macronu-
trients (Ca, Mg and P) was greatly reduced. The availability of
the majority of micronutrients and toxic elements decreased.
This showed that ash acted as a fertilizer that released nutrients
slowly. This also showed reduced environmental impact, since
nutrients were not eluted to ground and surface waters. By
taking into consideration germination efficiency of plants, the
dosage of ash should not exceed 5%. Therefore, we concluded
that the safe level of ash supplementation, when taking into
consideration germination efficiency, bioavailability to plants
and environmental safety would be on the level lower than
5%.
Summarizing, our data showed that it is possible to use ash
obtained by heating a single family house (annual ash production
150 kg ash year1 ).
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